The Librarians

This is quite a scary documentary, depicting as it does, the culture clashes in the United States between two polar opposite sets of opinion that leaves the school librarian caught in the ensuing maelstrom. With the increasing politicisation of education and it’s resources, more and more parents and politicians are reacting to their perceptions of indoctrination by banning books. No we are not usually talking about the likes of Josef Goebbels spouting hatred from a swastika-bedecked podium; in many cases these are just ordinary parents who fear that their kids are being exposed to corrupting material at an early age by people who have an agenda! Anyone recall Margaret Thatcher’s similar “Section 28” legislation that attempted to achieve the same goals forty-odd years ago in the UK? It was horrendous then and is no less so now, and the fact that professionals are living under threats of violence for attempting to uphold what they believe to be their First Amendment obligations is frankly quite breathtaking. The subjective nature by which this censorship is applied is presented, as are the religious undertones of those directly involved and/or funding the groups so vociferous in their opposition to free expression. My problem with this is a lack of balance. These librarians are given the microphone but not one of them takes a view supportive of intervention. Maybe there aren’t any amongst the USA's thousands of library staff, but I doubt that and so at times this came across as too one-sided. Moreover, I didn’t count one man interviewed from the librarian's side either. For a debate to have traction and deliver any chance of a solution, both sides must be heard equally. There are no one-to-one chats with parents terrified about the sexualisation of their offspring. Sure, there is plenty of news actuality and home video recordings of school board meetings, but I think that in order to understand just why feelings on this topic run so very high we have to listen to both sides of the argument and see whether compromise is possible. This documentary clearly presents a scenario in which that would seem impossible, but just as it horrifically monikers some librarians as “paedophile” it also portrays some parents as little better than ignorant bigots. This certainly spotlights some atrociously short-sighted and oppressive policies and it certainly makes me more appreciative that I grew up in a nation where God, as is mentioned here, was left in his church and not brought to the classroom. It’s provocative and in many ways disgusting, but there was room in ninety minutes to at least try to understand the philosophy and apprehensions of some people this makes it very easy to abhor and ridicule.